₦airaland Forum

President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday asked those who have stolen the nation’s commonwealth to come and negotiate how they will return their loot.

He said the move has become necessary so that all may know peace.

The President has also told militants engaging in renewed violence in the Niger Delta in clear terms that the unity of the country remains non-negotiable.

Buhari spoke when Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo and the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Muhammed Bello, led residents of the FCT to pay him Sallah homage at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
The President said looters would not know peace if they refused to return stolen funds because his government would continue to be on their trail.

“Please tell those with plenty of money which does not belong to them‎ to try and negotiate and return it in peace so that both they and us will be in peace, otherwise we will continue to look for it,” the President said.

On security, the President expressed delight that his government had made a lot of progress in fighting terrorism in the North East.

He regretted that while the anti-terrorism war is being won, the issue of militancy in the Niger Delta resurfaced.

Buhari said the Federal Government had commenced the process of identifying the number of groups involved in militancy in the region with a view to getting their leaders and appealing to them to give Nigeria a chance.

He said he was in agreement with the slogan made popular by a former military Head owon (retd.), that to keep Nigeria one is a task that must be accomplished.
He made it clear to the militants blowing up pipelines and infrastructure in the region that Nigeria’s unity is not negotiable.

The President said, “Please pass the message to the militants that one Nigeria is not negotiable. They better accept this fact.

“The Nigerian constitution is clear as to what they should get and I assure them that there will be justice‎.”

Buhari also admitted that despite the change in name and form of the National Electric Power Authority, the power situation in the country has remained unreliable.

He said that was why the radio has become a major source of information dissemination as those who do not have electricity at home can easily walk into a barber’s shops or drinking joints and listen to the radio before continuing their journey.

“Those who watch television are at the mercy of what is used to be called NEPA. Whichever form it (NEPA) has taken now, it has maintained the tradition of unreliability. It is not everyday that the people get the news,” the President said.
Buhari also admitted that there were a lot of problems bedeviling the nation, especially on food production.

He disclosed that the Minister of Agriculture, Chief Audu Ogbeh; and the Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele, are working hard to address food production problem.

He said the CBN was borrowing the minister money outside the budget so that he can assist states especially the 13 states that can produce rice.

The President expressed the belief that once the nation can feed itself, more money can be spent on infrastructure and social services.

Earlier, Osinbajo had said that it has been a tough journey for the present administration because of the clean-up exercise it embarked on since inception.

He said the Buhari administration inherited what he called “huge financial mess” from the past administration.

He however expressed joy that things have started looking up, adding that things would soon be better for the nation and Nigerians.
“We will place the country on a strong footing,” Osinbajo assured Nigerians.

Osinbajo prayed for Buhari that as he grows older in age, he would be stronger in strength, adding that the President will have enough strength to be victorious no matter the challenges facing him and the country.

Highlights of the Sallah homage included when the Minister of FCT presented a giant season’s card to the President while representatives of the Aso Villa Chapel presented him with a big mirror and a giant season’s card.

Buhari later took time to shake hands and pose for photographs with all his guests one after the other.
Representatives of the President of the Senate, Bukola Saraki and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara; members of the Federal Executive Council and top presidential aides attended the event.

He invented a son named Olabode Hycinth Ilene born in 1994, and a daughter named Chiyene Amaka Janet Ilene born in 1999.

joseph1832:
Bros, na open market we dey oh. Lol.

joseph1832:
Hope its me, the song remind you of?

Roon9:
Lol! Dat awkward moment when you don't know the name of ur all time best song. It's possible it was wrongly named when she got it shar

A serial fraudster who conned the taxman out of £25,000 by creating two imaginary children complete with bogus birth certificates and school letters was jailed for 30 months.

Afamefuna Ilene, 44, claimed his son and daughter were living with him in his single bedroom flat in Battersea, south London, after their mother fell ill in Nigeria.

He invented a son named Olabode Hycinth Ilene born in 1994, and a daughter named Chiyene Amaka Janet Ilene born in 1999.

Ilene produced two birth certificates from a Lagos hospital, then created school places for them by doctoring admissions letters from a local academy and a college.

He also photoshopped an optician’s letter for the younger child, and managed to claim an extra £65 per week to cover his child care costs.

In total he pocketed £25,626.12 in tax credits between May 2013 and March 2015.

Prosecutor Wendy Hewitt told the Old Bailey it was still unclear as to whether the two children were entirely made up or based on relatives still living in Lagos.

Ilene was jailed for 30 months after admitting two counts of knowingly being concerned in the fraudulent payment of tax credits.

Judge Stephen Kramer QC told him: ‘From what I have heard you are a practiced fraudster, although not perhaps particularly successful in the end.’

Ilene is already serving a 54-month prison sentence passed in November 2014 for orchestrating a £32,000 VAT fraud by claiming to be trading low value jewellery under the name ‘Onefashionavenue’.

He applied for VAT refunds on the nonexistent goods by photoshopping his bank statements and creating fraudulent invoices to make it look like he was buying stock.

The conman has another conviction for fraud dating back to 2010 where he tried to defraud HMRC out of £600,000 in a similar VAT fraud.

Hugh O’Donaghue, for Ilene, said: ‘The amount of money was not to be sneezed at but all the same it was not a large amount of benefit.

‘He’s 44 and he has a life in front of him – he’s a skilled IT worker who makes his own software and he tells me that on his release from prison he can go back and resume his employment.

‘He’s asked me to let the court know that he is very sorry for what he has done and very remorseful.’

Following his jail sentence in 2014, Anthony Swarbrick, the assistant director of HMRC’s Fraud Investigation Service said: ‘Ilene is a serial fraudster who time and again has failed to learn that crime does not pay.

‘He pretended to operate a legitimate business to steal money from the UK taxpayer which should be spent on vital public services.His criminal behaviour is totally unacceptable and he will continue to be under our watch to prevent any further criminal actions.’

Ilene, formerly of Stanmer Street, Battersea, southwest London, admitted two counts of being knowingly concerned in the fraudulent payment of tax credits.

He denied a third count of making or supplying articles for use in fraud relating to the photoshopped letters, and the charge was left to lie on file.

ppreye:
ROTFL! mine is "dear polly" by The Stanley brothers. powerful song, just can't get enough of it, ever!

lalasticlala food don come ooooo ;DROTFL! mine is "dear polly" by The Stanley brothers. powerful song, just can't get enough of it, ever!

lalas.ticlala food don come ooooo

quid:
so-called Saraki trial is a gross abuse of legal process.

fiizznation:
They should keep blowing up their lands just to spite whoever they wanna spite, who cares?

madridguy:
Saraki/Ekweremadu must go DOLE. Meanwhile, someone should hint the " Kuje prison " senate president not to attend eid prayer tomorrow to avoid another touching story cos Gere Alimi boys are not smiling.

For instance, they note that Salisu Buhari, the first Speaker of the House of Representatives in the Fourth Republic, lost his seat in 1999 for forging his university certificate and age.

In the upper chamber, Sen. Evan Enwerem, the first President of the Senate in the Forth Republic, also lost his seat on Nov. 18, 1999, following controversies generated by allegations that he falsified his name.

“The Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) is the Chief Law Officer of the nation; it is within his constitutional powers to determine who has infringed upon the law and who has not,’’ he said.

In his statement to the Police, Sen. Ita Enang, who was the Chairman of the Senate Committee of Rules and Business in the 7th Senate, said that the standing order had never been amended.

He said that the committee proposed the amendment of the 2011 Standing Order but up to the expiration of its tenure, the proposal was not debated, approved or rejected at any Senate sitting
Okoi Obono-Obla, the Special Assistant to the President on Prosecution, emphasised that the AGF had not done anything wrong by prosecuting the lawmakers in the alleged forgery case.

He said that the AGF’s action never undermined the country’s democracy, adding that he only acted in accordance with the powers vested on him.

He said that in line with the provisions of Section 174 (1) of the Constitution, the AGF could prosecute any citizen, adding that was what he had done.
Mr. Obono-Obla stressed that the Senate was not on trial and the AGF had not taken the Senate to court, adding that he had only taken four individuals to court.

“Being President of the Senate does not make one the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The matter was investigated by the police and a prima facie case was established.

“The AGF invoked his powers under Section 174 (1) to initiate criminal proceedings against those persons and this matter is now before a court of law,’’ he said.

Mr. Obono-Obla said that one of the striking features of democracy was the separation of powers among the three arms of government, stressing that the senators were not in a position to constitute themselves into a court of law.

“He (AGF) is not answerable to the Senate; by virtue of the principle of separation of powers, he is answerable to the President who appointed him. And he has not done anything wrong.

“You cannot be a judge in your own case,’’ he added.
Analysts, nonetheless, argue that Mr. Saraki is not the first lawmaker in Nigeria’s political history to face investigation or prosecution for misdemeanours.

For instance, they note that Salisu Buhari, the first Speaker of the House of Representatives in the Fourth Republic, lost his seat in 1999 for forging his university certificate and age.

In the upper chamber, Sen. Evan Enwerem, the first President of the Senate in the Forth Republic, also lost his seat on Nov. 18, 1999, following controversies generated by allegations that he falsified his name.

Later, Sen. Adolphus Wabara, the President of the Senate between 2003 and 2005 resigned from his position, following allegations that he and others took a bribe from a minister.

As regards actual prosecution, Farouk Lawal, a former member of the House of Representatives, is currently facing trial for alleged bribery.

The current Senate Leader, Sen. Ali Ndume, is also being prosecuted for alleged complicity by holding information about the Boko Haram insurgents.

All in all, the analysts contend that pragmatic efforts should be made to resolve the alleged forgery case involving Messrs. Saraki and Ekweremadu, as part of efforts to protect the sanctity of the Senate and the integrity of the country’s democracy.

They insist that regardless of the position of the suspected perpetrators of the wrongdoing, the law should be allowed to fully run its course. (NAN Features)

The lingering face-off between the Presidency and the Senate over the alleged forgery of Senate rules when the 8th National Assembly was proclaimed has elicited grave concern among discerning Nigerians.

It was alleged that the forged rules paved the way for the election of Sen. Bukola Saraki and Sen. Ike Ekweremadu as Senate President and Deputy Senate President respectively.

The controversies that greeted the emergence of the two Senate leaders have yet to abate.
It will be recalled that Mr. Saraki and Senator Ahmed Lawan, both of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), contested for the Senate President post but the contest somewhat led to the polarisation of the party.

Members of the APC particularly resented the election of Mr. Ekweremadu of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as deputy senate president and this further polarised the party.

The development also provoked the onset of allegations regarding the forgery of the Senate Rules, in a plot to facilitate the election of the two principal officers of the upper legislative arm.
Senators, opposed to the leadership of Mr. Saraki, had on July 29, 2015 filed a suit at Federal High Court in Abuja, seeking the nullification of the June 9 proclamation of the 8th Senate carried out by the management of the National Assembly.

The group of senators implored the court to declare the proclamation of the 8th Senate as well as the election of its presiding officers as null and void based on the alleged forgery.

Sen. Kabiru Marafa (APC-Zamfara West), in one of the sittings of the 8th Senate, raised a point of order that the new Standing Order 2015 (as amended), which was produced and circulated, was never approved by the 7th Senate.

He concluded that new Standing Order was a fraudulent document, adding that all the activities conducted by the Senate from June 9, 2015 were, therefore, null and void.

In a swift reaction, Sen. Gilbert Nnaji (PDP-Enugu East) approached a court to stop the police from investigating the alleged forgery of the 2015 Senate Standing Order.

Responding to the suit, the former Inspector-General of Police, Solomon Arase, via a counter-affidavit, said no court of law in the country had the power to stop the police from carrying out its statutory function of investigating crimes.

According to him, nobody in the country, including the 74 political office holders covered by the provisions of Section 308 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), is exempted from investigation.
Mr. Arase argued that the principal officers of the Senate had no constitutional immunity from investigation.

According to the rules of the Senate, there are procedures for amending the Senate Standing Orders. Section 110 of the Senate Standing Order 2011 specifically lists the procedures that should be followed in making such amendments.

Benedict Efeturi, the Deputy Clerk to the National Assembly, confirmed to police investigators that the Senate Standing Order that was used for the 2015 election of Messrs. Saraki and Ekweremadu was different from the 2011 version which ought to have been used at that point in time.

Mr. Efeturi made the disclosure to the Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department of the Nigeria Police, which investigated claims that the rules were forged to facilitate the election of Messrs. Saraki and Ekweremadu.

However, after a year since the news of the alleged forgery broke, the Senate President, his deputy, Salisu Maikasuwa, the former Clerk of the National Assembly and his deputy, Mr Efeturi were arraigned at FCT High Court, Abuja on June 27.

Mr. Saraki, who has consistently voiced his innocence as to the formulation of the contentious Senate Rules, said that the case of forgery brought against him at the FCT High Court, Abuja, was another phase in the orchestrated persecution he had been facing since his emergence as senate president.

The senate president alleged that some cabals, who had taken over the control of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration, were now using it to perpetrate their nefarious activities.
He said that the on-going trial of the Senate leadership was an attack on the legislative arm of government.

“Today, we the leaders of the Nigerian Senate reiterate our innocence against the charges filed by the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) at the FCT High Court on the allegations of forgery of the Senate Standing Rules document,’’ he said.

On the other hand, Mr. Ekweremadu wrote to the United Nations, the U.S. Congress and the European Union Parliament, alerting the international community over what he described as an attempt to truncate Nigeria’s democracy.

He said that the endeavour was also aimed at silencing him as the highest ranking member of the opposition party in the country.

He said that his trial alongside Mr. Saraki and two others was part of an orchestrated attempt to stifle the opposition and ensure the full entrenchment of dictatorship in Nigeria.

Mr. Ekweremadu said that their arraignment before the court could not be divorced from the perceived bid by some elements in the Federal Government who were bent on crippling the National Assembly, all the name of fighting corruption.

In a swift reaction to Mr. Saraki’s allegation, Femi Adesina, the President’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, said that the senate president’s claim would have been more worthwhile if it had been backed with adequate information.

“If he had proceeded to identify those who constitute the ‘government within the government’, it would have taken the issue beyond the realm of fiction and mere conjecture.

“But as it stands, the allegation is not even worth the paper on which it was written, as anybody can wake from a troubled sleep and say anything.

modath:
Just when you think you've heard it all and have become shock proof, PDP thieves will pull another one from outer field!!

Loan office of NSA money? are you a savings an loans?

Thunder where are you nah? I need you to fire one old disgrace of a tribesman!! Agbaya Ole onijekuje...

Omisore, who knew the game was up said: ‘I will not follow you, only my corpse will follow you.’ The suspense continued until his lawyer, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, asked him to go to EFCC headquarters.

chriskosherbal:
God save our dear Nigeria from corrupt politicians.

francizy:
Don't mind the sycopahntic and hypocritical element. Even on the Hausa crime thread, the yeye blamed ugliness for the crime of beheading but was quick to call a non-Igbo guy from SS Igbo because the SS guy committed a crime and also because he (midoliar) loves to hate on Igbos.

Disgusting filts abounds in our country tho..

Oliviaxx:
Hope it works. The first one I tried didnt

Following a Direction to the telecommunications service providers in the country, the operators, will from July 1, 2016, activate the DO NOT DISTURB facility which gives subscribers the freedom to choose what messages to receive from the various networks.

With this Direction the operators have been mandated to dedicate a common Short Code (2442) which will enable subscribers take informed decisions.

Mr. Tony Ojobo, Director of Public Affairs, Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), in a statement, said this action was taken in order to protect subscribers from the nuisance of unsolicited texts, and therefore a direct regulatory response to the yearnings of the subscribers.

By this action, he explained, the Commission has invoked a regulatory provision which had hitherto been overlooked by the operators.

Taking cognizance of the broad range of services which include: Banking/Insurance/ Financial Products, Real Estate, Education, Health, Consumer Goods and Automobiles, Communication/ Broadcasting/ Entertainment/ IT, Tourism and leisure, Sports, Religion(Christianity, Islam, others), the Commission directed the operators to give the necessary instructions and clarifications that will enable subscribers subscribe to a particular service/services /none at all.

In fact, a Full DND which is SMS “STOP” to 2442 does not allow the subscriber to receive any unsolicited message from the operators at all.

Below are the various options:

“SMS 1” for receiving SMS relating to Banking? Insurance/ Financial products to 2442
“SMS 2” for receiving |SMS relating to real Estate to 2442
“SMS 3” for receiving SMS relating to Education to 2442
“SMS 4” for receiving SMS relating to Health to 2442
“SMS 5” for receiving SMS relating to Consumer goods and Automobiles to 2442”
“SMS 6” for receiving SMS relating to Communication/ Broadcasting Entertainment/IT to 2442
“SMS 7” for receiving SMS relating to Tourism and leisure to 2442
“SMS 8” for receiving SMS relating to Sports to 2442
“SMS 9” for receiving SMS relating to Religion to 2442

Ojobo pointed out however that the decision of the Commission does not affect personal messages or person to person messages which are private communication by individuals.
He urged the operators to comply immediately with the Direction issued by the Commission and never again harass subscribers with unwanted messages.

HomoSapiien:
That's not entirely true

importexpert:
since you want me to comment on your thread, this is your hi